When the topic of college relationships comes up, it usually brings to mind casual dating, overnight hook-ups and short-lived relationships.
But some students are defying the stereotype and tying the knot while still in college.
Allison Allen, a biology and secondary education senior, and her husband, Thomas Allen, an architecture junior, met at a church function and married at the age of 20.
"Although many people warned us that it may be hard to be devoted to a marriage and fulfill our obligations at school, having someone there to rely on and provide emotional support when school gets crazy is very comforting," Allison said.
"Our relationship works because we know what the other person is going through."
Some experts in the field, however, are not as optimistic.
"Statistically, marriages between those in their late teens and early twenties have almost twice the divorce rate as those of individuals who wait a few more years," said Mary Doyle, lecturer in the family and human development department. Nationally, the divorce rate among 18- to 22-year-olds is 80 percent, almost double the national average.
"Many young people marry for the wrong reasons," Doyle said. "Some want to gain adult status or just get out of their family of origin."
Pete Padilla, associate professor of sociology at ASU, agrees.
"There are those who marry because they cannot have a sexual relationship because of religious or moral obligations and see marriage as a way to solve that problem," Padilla said. "They don't take the time to fully understand the pressures that marriage brings, like when to have children or where the money is going to come from.
"[Young] people plan weddings, not marriages," he added. "They get so caught up in all the romantic side of marriage that they don't work on other parts of the relationship."
Padilla said the biggest concerns of young couples are balancing household chores, school and obligations to each other.
"Once love and all the romance runs out, you have to have something to fall back on," Padilla said.
Allen agreed there are plenty of problems, including scheduling, stress and lack of time to see her husband, but the two rely on family support to keep their balance.
Although the University does not have the same resources for married couples as schools like Brigham Young University, which provides special living quarters for families, ASU does provide couples counseling through the Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic.
"Many young marriages can be very successful if they only learn how to avoid the pitfalls that come with that level of commitment," said Doyle, who serves as the clinic's coordinator.
That's the approach Mandy Canzoneri, an elementary education sophomore, and her fiance Matt Beatty, a pre-physical therapy junior, are taking.
The two plan to marry once Canzoneri graduates, but in the meantime, the two are full-time students who work 30 hours each week to pay bills and save money.
"We're definitely planning for the future, even though the marriage date has not yet been set," Canzoneri said.
That type of preparation is crucial to a successful union, said Amy Collier, director of marriage preparations at the All-Saints Catholic Newman Center.
The center offers six-week programs for engaged couples and teams them with already-married couples, who serve as mentors.
"Research shows that the process of maturing is not complete till the age of 23 or 24," Collier said.
The program balances the spiritual preparation mandated by the church with teaching students to have realistic expectations of their partners, Collier said of the program, open to couples of other faiths.
"What young people need to know is that romantic feelings come and go -- it's the commitment to get through the hard times together that makes a successful marriage," Collier said.
To find more information about marriage and relationship counseling, contact the Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic at (480)-965-9373, or call the Newman Center at (480)-967-7823.
Reach the reporter at lucia.bill@asu.edu.
